Not him
by Dihydroxyacetonphosphat
Summary: This girl, as pretty as she might be, was absolutely useless. He sighed. He had hoped she would do better. (Victoria Chase/Mark Jefferson)


„Oh, come on, Victoria. Get it together!"

He took down the camera. She had not lain still for a single second since she had woken up. Her body was shivering and her eyes were moving, hastily, searching for his as if she was trying to understand what she saw - who she saw. She kept babbling on and on, something about why she was here, or why he had picked her, or that she did not want this. That he should stop. And she cried. She just did not stop crying and whining.

This girl, as pretty as she might be, was absolutely useless. He sighed. He had hoped she would do better.

"Victoria." Mark knelt down beside her. Holding the camera in one hand, he gripped her jaw with the other and turned the girl to face him. She did not flinch a second under his touch.

Her eyes were red from crying. Although he usually did not want tears on his photos he had to admit that in Victoria's case it fitted quite well. If she just could stop moving and talking nonsense.

"Listen. You're fucking up my shots." Her eyes beamed into his with that exhausted, sad look that would break anyone else's heart. "Since you were always trying your best to impress me I thought you'd do a bit better as my subject." He let go off her and her head fell down to the floor again, but her gaze remained focused on him. There was something behind her eyes. Something that amazed him.

After moments of staring into each others eyes his mouth escaped a short, barking laugh. "What is it, Victoria?" Eyebrows raised in expectation, he hold the eye contact upright. "I thought you would enjoy a little time in private with me. Isn't that what you wanted?" Well, not that private since Max slept peacefully on the black chair right behind them. But still, she was sleeping. It should count the same as being alone with him.

Another wave of her tears broke their eye contact. Victoria had shut her eyes tensely now, the tears streaming down her face nevertheless. "Not you. Not with you." she whispered. It made him laugh again. She did not make any sense in this drugged state.

"You're not him."

"What was that?" He was not sure if he had heard her properly. But when she spoke again, she said that exact phrase over and over, as if to make sure he understood.

"You're not him. You're not him."

For a brief moment he wanted to laugh again but then instead, it made him angry. Firmly he took her face into his hand and she opened her eyes in surprise. "You have no idea who I am. No idea!"

She winced at his loud, harsh voice. "You're talking like Rachel. You're so sure about knowing everything so well. But do you get it now, Victoria? None of you miserable teenage fucks knows a single thing about me! Not Max, not Rachel, not Nathan and certainly not you!" He heard Max shift in her chair and sighed. Now he had woken her with all that noise.

"You leave me no choice. You already know too much about me and Nathan thanks to goddamn nosy Maxine over here." He stood up, walked over to his cupboard and prepared another dose for her – the last one she would ever get. "You can thank her for that. Originally, I hadn't planned to hurt you after all. But since she told you everything about her private little investigations I have to make sure that you keep your mouth shut for once."

Neither was she shivering nor crying anymore when he returned, once more kneeling beside her. She seemed to be totally catatonic by now. He might get a few good shots of her after all.

"I am truly sorry to disappoint you, Victoria." He was not sure why he had said that. He was not even sure if he was sorry or not. Well, he had certainly not planned to kill her. He never wanted her to have anything to do with all this. But now it was just necessary to silence her cheeky mouth.

She shifted a bit when he grabbed her throat to inject the dose. Just when he had removed the needle from her flesh again she mumbled something. "You... you know I..."

"What?" He was so done with her babbling all that shit.

"I... I really...was...in..."

Her whisper was weak and gentle and then she had drifted away.

He lifted his camera again to take a few last shots of her before her eyes would turn into emptiness for ever.

Stupid girl.


End file.
